


Stepping on Butterflies

by crysgen78



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Dresden Files - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, Gen, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-21
Updated: 2011-12-21
Packaged: 2017-10-28 13:17:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/308250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crysgen78/pseuds/crysgen78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If Harry Dresden wasn’t Harry Dresden, then what would he be?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stepping on Butterflies

**Author's Note:**

> Written for cephis who asked for a DF/DW x-over with the prompt "swimming through time" for the Dresden ficathon on LJ. Thanks to Sulien77 for the quick and dirty beta. There is a brief non-graphic mention of canonical character death at which point it becomes A/U.

Cold, wet nose is no way to be woken from a dead sleep. Pushing Mouse away from my face where he was happily snuggling up to me, I noticed a faint blue glow coming from underneath my bedroom door. Feeling out my wards, I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, which actually made me even more nervous than if there had been some big bad waiting to get me. Pulling on a shirt, I opened my bedroom door and checked my shields in case they were needed.

The blue light was coming from a box that was a few inches shorter than me. I’ve never been one to be known as shy so I knocked on the door. Out popped a head of wild hair followed by a lanky body in a brown suit and trainers. He was wearing some black rimmed glasses and a slightly manic grin. “Ah, yes, hello there. Sorry about the landing. I need to have a chat with my girl here,” he patted the side of box. “We should be out of your way in just a mo’”.

He disappeared back into the box and shut the door in my face. Just as I was getting ready to knock again and ask just what the hell was going on, out popped the wild hair again. “Feel like a day trip?” I have to admit, I probably blinked rather stupidly at him. He sighed and grabbed my arm, pulling me inside the box after him. I had been prepared to be hunched over as I tried to back away from the crazy person with the crazier hair. I gawped, looking around. “It’s bigger inside.” Wow, I wish I could get this as an option in the Blue Beetle.

“Yes, the old girl hears that a lot.” He smiled at me as he was frantically pulling levers and pressing buttons. Talk about your bells and whistles. Stars and stone, he wasn’t going to make this easy.

“Who are you?”

“The Doctor, and you are?”

“Harry.” That was all he was getting out of me, if all I was getting was “The Doctor”. We shook hands, but I didn’t meet his gaze. I had the distinct feeling I’d get lost or become a plate of mushy vegetables if I tried a Soul Gaze. I looked around the glowing room and noticed the slight hum. It felt warm, good, but powerful. “Uh, I think I should tell you that technology and I don’t exactly get along.”

“Not to worry, Harry, the TARDIS is more than a machine, you know.” He clapped his hands together once. “Now, allons-y”

To say that the ride was not smooth would be an understatement. As we both dragged ourselves up from our prone floor level positions, my invader-cum-travel guide hummed slightly and winked at me, “Well, perhaps she’s a bit more machine than I let on.”

His grin was slightly infectious. “You always show strangers such a good time?”

“Actually, yes, I do. Now, shall we see where we are?” He gestured to the door.

I don’t know what I expected, but stepping out onto the Magnificent Mile was not it. It wasn’t quite right, though, recognizable, but everything looked a little old fashioned.

Crazy hair guy, since I refused to call him “The Doctor”, had stepped out behind me and had a small frown on his face. He looked around, and looked back to me. I could see his eyes widen marginally as I spotted a much younger version of Justin DuMorne. The Doctor was grabbing for me, but it was too late. I reacted without thinking, and just like that, Justin was dead. I had killed him again, which made absolutely no sense.

I felt numb as I was being dragged back into the blue box. Inside, I pitched forward to my knees and vomited all over the shiny glowing floor. I could hear the humming the engine coming to life and feel the tiny vibration under the palms of my hand.

The Doctor sat down next to me and sighed. “What am I supposed to do with you now?”

I wiped my mouth on the back of my hand. “Take me home.”

“That’s just the thing, Harry, I can’t take you home.”

I felt fury build in me as though a flame had touched dynamite. “What do you mean ‘can’t’?”

“What just happened…well, that shouldn’t have been possible. We crossed into your own time line. I take you knew him.”

I shuddered. “Yeah, he was my guardian.”

“I assume he was not the good sort.”

I shook my head in response. “So we crossed into my own time line, and I killed Justin for the second time.”

“It was the first time, Harry.”

“Huh?”

“We traveled to a time before Justin being your guardian, so when you killed him just now, it was before your younger self had a chance to. You and the life that you remember, they don’t exist anymore. You are now a walking paradox.”

“So you can’t take me home because home doesn’t exist.”

“Not that home anyway.”

“So what home does exist?”

“Not one you can live in, I’m afraid.”

“Can I see it?” The ground had opened up below me and the earth had swallowed me whole.

“That is probably a very bad idea, but I’ll take you there if you promise not to touch anything, speak to anyone, and for the love of all that’s holy, do not change anything in this time line.”

“I swear on my wizard scout honor.”

“Right then, shall we?” He hopped up and pushed buttons and pulled levers until I could feel movement all around me. At least we didn’t get suctioned to the floor again.

The Doctor pushed open the door and stepped out ahead of me. I followed, and was only mildly surprised to find myself in Chicago, but in front of Waldorf School this time. For the second time, I found myself blinking rather stupidly.

“Uh, don’t tell me a Never Never beastie is going to eat all good little children and that’s why I’m here.”

“That happen to you a lot?”

“You have no idea.”

He smirked. “Sorry to ruin all your fun, but that’s not why we’re here.” He beckoned me over and pointed through a window.

I almost didn’t recognize myself being well fed and well groomed standing in front of a classroom. Hells Bells. “I teach kindergarten?!”

Fin.


End file.
